The European Commission presented today its new European Internal Security Strategy, a unified approach that facilitates coordinated action and deepens cooperation amongst EU countries through information sharing. This strategy enhances the EU's resilience and collective ability to prevent, detect, and respond effectively to security threats. By integrating security considerations into the development and implementation of Union policies across Member States, it promotes a cohesive and comprehensive whole-of-society approach to security. The strategy also supports Member States in leveraging technology to strengthen security, rather than compromising it, and fosters a secure digital space for all. Furthermore, it enables a common response by Member States to global political and economic shifts that impact the Union's internal security, ensuring a united and effective approach to addressing emerging challenges.

Establishing a campus to advance EU internal security

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) is set to play a key role in implementing this strategy by establishing a Research and Innovation Security Campus. The new campus will be a reference point for EU security research, encompassing border management, law enforcement, nuclear security, crisis management, space, secure communication and defence. It will be an incubator of new technologies applied to security, capable of bringing together policymakers, researchers, law enforcement agencies, and security professionals.

While the new campus will mark a dramatic increase in how the JRC enables internal security, many current JRC research activities will also play an important role in supporting the new strategy.

Developing technologies for border management and law enforcement

This includes a variety of operational aspects of the strategy, such as border management: in this area, the JRC’s Border Security Laboratory will contribute by developing and testing new technologies for the integrated management of borders.

JRC expertise also supports law enforcement, particularly in the digital space: it does so by helping build capabilities in cyber-threat intelligence and the detection of online criminality, developing anti-money laundering technology, contributing to the development of digital identity wallets to counter fraud, and upgrading decryption for law enforcement with state-of-the-art technology, including forward-looking research on post-quantum cryptography. Moreover, the JRC will help develop counter-drone technologies with a dedicated new laboratory.

Improving communication security

The JRC is also supporting the implementation of IRIS², the new EU secure satellite constellation. This key infrastructure, expected to become fully operational by 2030, will improve the security of governmental communications in the EU.

The JRC is also going to connect to the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure backbone, which provides an additional security layer based on quantum physics. JRC work on quantum technologies is planned to expand to quantum computing and quantum sensors.

JRC research also contributes to a more secure and safer internet, with work on protocols for a scalable, efficient and secure internet and the development of guidelines to protect minors online from child sexual abuse, human trafficking, and online criminal recruitment.

Countering hybrid threats and terrorism

Resilience against hybrid threats is another key aspect of the new Internal Security Strategy. To support it, the JRC has developed a whole-of-society framework to identify and respond to hybrid threats. The framework includes models and guidelines to improve the digital resilience of energy, transport and digital infrastructures, among others.

Moreover, the JRC has set up a Knowledge Hub on the protection of public spaces. This portal offers guidance and scientific research to help policymakers and local authorities improve the safety of public spaces.

The JRC also offers dedicated training to security personnel in EU countries, to help them respond to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats.

Monitoring foreign interference

The JRC supports the screening of foreign investment transactions in the EU: it analyses the ownership structure of foreign investors and EU targets, to uncover links with foreign governments and anomalous investment patterns that could point to foreign attempts to threaten EU security or public order.

With its Trade Intelligence Platform, the JRC helps identify trade dependencies and sanction circumvention. Building on its capacity and experience, the JRC can play a key role in designing the forthcoming EU Customs Data Hub.

The JRC also tracks and analyses foreign information manipulation and interference, as well as disinformation activities on topics like elections, key geopolitical events, and crises.

Future-proofing Europe

The JRC has unique foresight capabilities, which are crucial in identifying future threats and developing mitigation strategies. For example, a recently published report looks at security risks associated with emerging technologies and formulates policy advice to prepare for the challenges ahead.